Mafia, Media and Myth: Representations of Russian Organised Crime

• NCJ Number: 175765
• Journal: Howard Journal of Criminal Justice Volume: 37 Issue: Dated: Pages: 0-358
• Author(s): P Rawlinson
• Date Published: 1998
• Length: 13 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Language: English
• Country: United Kingdom

Annotation

This article examines the portrayal of Russian organized crime in the Western and Russian media and how these representations reaffirm orthodox interpretations of the "mafia," particularly those produced in the United States.

Abstract

Although all definitions of "organized crime" tend to be either too inclusive or too narrow, this does not mean that the term is inappropriate nor that there are no long-term groups of criminals who commit serious offenses or even begin to constitute a state. The epistemological difficulties of definitions involve the sort of evidence used to account for the structuring of criminal behavior; the range of criminal behaviors that come under the umbrella of any group of criminals; how far up the political chain one reaches in the delineation of organized criminals; and the validity of the evidence upon which one relies. A discussion of the nature of organized crime and its markets focuses on its manifestation in Europe as a cross-border criminal economy, as well as the American-Italian model, which is structured socially and organizationally to handle criminal disputes associated with criminal enterprises. A discussion of organized crime in the United Kingdom notes that the lack of a research base on patterns of criminal relationships in most European countries, including the United Kingdom, means that there is little information about how domestic criminals meet and decide what to do. Most plausible is the notion that Euro- criminals are either crime entrepreneurs who already exploit international trade for the purposes of fraud and/or smuggling, or money launderers who put their clients in touch with each other. A discussion of the control of organized crime in the United Kingdom focuses on substantive legislation on money laundering and the proceeds of crime, as well as policing powers and resources assigned to controlling organized crime. The articles in this journal issue focus on the social and analytical complexity of the organization of crime and of responses to it. 3 notes and 26 references